Singapore’s cultural precinct of Chinatown is a hive of activity day and night and a heady mix of old and new. Retail options range from traditional wares to indie boutiques and bespoke finds. Visitors can head to On Cheong Jewellery for gold jewellery that features not only traditional Chinese motifs but also contemporary designs.

Egg tarts and the new contemporary cookie tin series at Tong Heng are the perfect treats for visitors with a sweet tooth. For tea connoisseurs, a visit to one of Singapore’s oldest tea merchants, Pek Sin Choon along Mosque Street is a definite must.

An angled view of a row of shops selling table cloths , bags, ornaments etc

Visitors who are interested to learn about Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) should stop by the Eu Yan Sang flagship store on South Bridge Road. It stocks a variety of health and wellness products, including medicinal herbs, herbal teas, pre-mixed soup packets and medicated ointments. On Ann Siang Road nearby, visitors who love fashion can step into innit Bangkok and browse the collection of fashion merchandise.

In the past, Bugis Street Market, located in the Bras Basah.Bugis district was filled with entertainment and alfresco dining, along with nightly adult-themed shows. Today, the bustling street market offers bargain hunters an array of apparel, accessories, quirky local souvenirs and eats. While wandering through the numerous shops, grab a bite at one of the snack stalls located within. With over 600 stores spread across three levels, shoppers will find something that appeals to them.

The external façade of the Bras Basah Complex. Collectors can browse through vintage magazines and books and art materials at this old school mall.

A pair of twin sisters founded the local boutique brand in 2015. As trained architects with a keen eye for design, the duo choose to set up Binary Style as a means of distilling key elements of Singapore’s architecture and weaving it with local patterns, shapes, and colors to tell a captivating tale. Primarily inspired by Singapore’s culture, heritage, urban life, and nature, Binary Style uses its collection of over 60 beautiful scarves as a medium to illustrate and narrate Singapore’s story–be it from the past or present. These scarves are made of either cotton, silk, cotton silk or chiffon, making them classic and comfortable pieces to wear and own.

Where to buy: Design Orchard, 250 Orchard Road and other outlets islandwide
Tel: +65 9030 6465 (Trade Contact: Santhi Tunas)
Website: www.binarystyle.co
Email: binarysingapore@gmail.com (Trade Contact: Santhi Tunas) Write in to enquire about travel trade deals.
Opening Hours: Mon–Sun 10.30am–9.30pm

Photo Phactory encapsulates Singapore’s heritage and history through vibrant photographic prints on various lifestyle products–from clutch bags and silk scarves to canvas prints and coasters. Its prints are inspired by various districts of Singapore and feature architecture, patterns, pop-up art and more. Many of them are presented in a colourful quilt-style that showcases different designs and places The brand’s design vision seeks to take classic elements and create them anew through everyday lifestyle products. The designs make great statement pieces and even better conversational pieces to tell tales of visitors’ trip to the city-state.

Where to buy: Design Orchard, 250 Orchard Road and other outlets islandwide
Tel: +65 9061 9772 (Trade Contact:Valley Arora)
Website: www.photophactorysg.com
Email: valleyaroraphotophactory@gmail.com (Trade Contact:Valley Arora)
Opening Hours: Mon–Sun 10.30am–9.30pm

Drawing inspiration from its Singaporean roots, Onlewo creates pattern designs with stories. Each design is a contemporary rendition of heritage, places and culture in Singapore and has been donned by public figures such as Singapore’s Minister for Communications and Information, S Iswaran. Look out for Onlewo’s rendition of ethnic neighbourhoods like Tiong Bahru, Little India and Chinatown that takes a modern and artistic approach in encapsulating their heritage.

The brand seeks to connect people and memories, enliven conversations and ignite new passions. Visitors will find all-original designs, including gifts, ladies’ and men’s fashion, scarves, fabric, cushion covers, bags, and many more. These specialty goods are available in Design Orchard and Naiise Iconic at Jewel Changi Airport. Write in for trade discounts.

Where to buy: Design Orchard, 250 Orchard Road; Jewel Changi Airport, 78 Airport Boulevard #02-205/206
Tel: +65 9112 4685 / +65 8100 9800 (Trade Contact: Eugene Yip)
Website: www.onlewo.com
Email: eugene@onlewo.com (Trade Contact: Eugene Yip)
Opening Hours: Mon–Sun 10.30am–9.30pm

A one-stop destination for quirky, design-centric items, Naiise offers more than 25,000 products from over 1,000 emergings and established brands from Singapore and around the world. A platform for budding designers to showcase their wares—from books and magazines to décor, fashion, lifestyle and food products—Naiise’s local collection presents unconventional souvenirs for travelers to bring back home.

Shoppers will find curry puff (deep-fried or baked pastry with curried fillings) cushions; prints and postcards with illustrations of local dishes; T-shirts printed with Singlish phrases and words and more. For visitors interested in handicrafts, Naiise hosts regular workshops ranging from brush lettering and calligraphy to terrarium building and jewelry making.

Elderly couple browsing items in a shop. Photo by Rebecca Teoh. Collectors can purchase locally designed souvenirs at Naiise at Katong.

Where to buy: Jewel Changi Airport, 78 Airport Boulevard #02-205/206 and other outlets islandwide
Tel: +65 6266 8418 / +65 6252 7701 (Trade Contact: Amanda Eng)
Website: www.naiise.com
Email: wecare@naiise.com / Amanda@naiise.com (Trade Contact: Amanda Eng)
Opening Hours: Mon–Sun 10am–10pm

Supermama works with some of the best designers and craft facilities to produce authentic souvenirs and design pieces. A unique souvenir to bring home would be the Singapore Recipe Tea Towels which made its debut at Moma Design Store, New York. Other bespoke finds from the brand include homeware such as handcrafted wooden teacups, porcelain plates, toys, furniture and accessories. In 2019, Supermama opened its second boutique in Jewel Changi Airport.

Visitors will find minimalist design pieces produced in collaborations between local designers and Japanese craft facilities, as well as a changing showcase of locally designed porcelain that they can browse and even bring home.

A flatlay of Singapore's souvenirs (from left): Supermama plates, Clipper Tea ware, Democratic society coffee shop chairs, local edible souvenirs (e.g. butterfly biscuits, coloured gems, wang wang), Naiise, The Farm Store, Democratic Society, LOVE SG, X-mini 3

Where to buy: Jewel Changi Airport, 78 Airport Boulevard #02-207 and other outlets islandwide
Tel: +65 9745 5147 (Trade Contact: Lee Mei Ling)
Website: www.supermama.sg
Email: info@supermama.sg (Trade Contact: Lee Mei Ling)
Opening Hours: Mon–Sun 10am–10pm

Violet Oon Singapore, by highly acclaimed culinary creator and chef Violet Oon, offers a gourmet selection of nonya kaya (a traditional jam made from coconut and eggs), pineapple tarts and cookies with flavours like gula Melaka (palm sugar), cashew nut and ginger. Made using the best and freshest ingredients, the selection captures the essence of the region’s vibrant selection of flavours. These delectable pieces, packed in portable and attractive packaging, make great souvenirs to take home and share.

Where to buy: ION Orchard, 2 Orchard Turn #03-28/29; Jewel Changi Airport, 78 Airport Boulevard #01-205/206 Tel: +65 9834 9935 / +65 9067 0410 (Trade Contact: Beth Ng)
Website: www.violetoon.com
Email: eat@violetoon.com / beth@mercurymc.com (Trade Contact: Beth Ng)
Opening Hours: Mon–Sun 10am–10pm; Breakfast 10am–11am; All-day Dining 11am–10pm (Last order 9.30pm); High Tea 3pm–5.30pm

Chocolate Bon Bons from Janice Wong Singapore come in a wide variety of decadent flavours. The brand’s Signature Singapore Series features local flavours like Chilli Padi and Gula Melaka Pandan. Each chocolatey creation is hand-painted and splattered with colourful hues, leaving an artistic touch on the outside to complement the flavourful chocolate filling on the inside.

Where to buy: 21A Lorong Liput, Holland Village and other outlets islandwide
Tel: +65 6291 9727 / +65 6280 2325 (Trade Contact: Natasha Shariff)
Website: www.janicewong.com.sg
Email: info@janicewong.com.sg / natasha@2amlab.org (Trade Contact: Natasha Shariff)
Opening Hours: Tue–Fri 3pm–2am (Last order at 1.30am); Sat & Sun 2pm–2am (Last order at 1.30am)

Touted as the original #DangerouslyAddictive snack from Singapore, IRVINS Salted Egg are handcrafted with love by dedicated production teams who spend hours frying and coating the chips and fish skin with their golden salted egg sauce. The halal-certified salted egg-coated chips and fried fish skins were founded by the former restaurant owner, Irvin Gunawan, after seeing the popularity of his bottled salted egg chips among restaurant patrons.

The outlets have seen snaking lines even before they open. Visitors can stock up on IRVINS’ salted egg potato chips, fish skins and cassava chips at the orchardgateway and Plaza Singapura cartels or the newly opened flagship Jewel cartel. For delivery or reservation of these snacks, visitors may place orders via IRVINS’ website

Photo Credits: Irvinsaltedegg.com

Where to buy: orchardgateway, 277 Orchard Road L1-K3; Plaza Singapura, 68 Orchard Road #B2-56 and other outlets islandwide
Tel: +65 6264 3073 / +65 6264 3076
Website: www.irvinsaltedegg.com
Email: sg@irvinsaltedegg.com
Opening Hours: Mon–Sun 10am–8.30pm